Traveling – Business vs. Pleasure

Traveling. Everyone does it. Whether it be for pleasure, business, or other reasons, you may have been quite the jet setter throughout your life. Some people love it; some people hate it. Most people, however, fall somewhere in between and it really depends on the nature of the travel.

Not too long ago, I had the pleasure of attending destination wedding. My wife and I had a blast hanging out with friends both from Seattle (home) and other cities across the country. We had the opportunity to catch up with friends from long ago, and although it’s all fun and games; naturally, some conversations involve work. As a consultant for some time now, I haven’t traveled too much, but have had some for non-local projects. Although I love to travel for pleasure, I am not a huge fan of traveling for work. To me, and most other people I know, traveling for pleasure is just that: pleasurable. You are either going or meeting up with loves ones doing awesome things. Memories are to be made and shared. Of course, things aren’t always perfect, but the general idea of people who love to travel is that they will have a blast!

On the other hand, traveling for work may or may not be different. Some really enjoy it as they are able to get away from home. Additionally, there are huge perks to traveling for work. Meals and accommodations are typically covered. Miles, points, and rewards get accumulated. You get to visit places that you may not usually get to. Or even better, you get to visit places that you love to!

However, I just happen to not be a huge fan. Don’t get me wrong. Working onsite with a client is very enjoyable and beneficial. Nothing can replace face to face time with the client. Workshops and ideas get hashed out resulting in brilliant products. After hours, however, is not so fun. Those free meals tend to get old and repetitive. Evenings in the hotel room result in more work or just killing time. Maybe I’m just not a seasoned business traveler…

How about you? What are your thoughts on traveling for both business and pleasure? How do you maintain a “normal” life on the road, or is that not even an issue? I’d really love to hear your comments!!!